Eye to Eye
Eye to Eye is a connection exercise in which pairs of players maintain sustained eye contact while performing various tasks or simply standing still. The exercise builds comfort with direct human connection and the vulnerability of being truly seen. It develops the focused attention that strong scene partnerships require.
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Related Exercises
Back to Back
Back to Back is a trust and connection exercise in which two players sit or stand with their backs pressed together and work together on a physical or verbal task without the benefit of eye contact. Common tasks include standing up simultaneously from a seated position, telling a collaborative story, or mirroring each other's movements through physical pressure alone. The absence of visual cues forces participants to communicate through weight, pressure, breath, and vocal tone, developing a physical listening channel that operates independently of sight. The exercise appears across multiple performance traditions, from Augusto Boal's Games for Actors and Non-Actors to John Abbott's The Improvisation Book, and is one of the most widely used partner exercises in both improv training and applied improvisation settings.
Speedy Get to Know You
Speedy Get to Know You is an icebreaker exercise in which players pair up for rapid rounds of conversation, switching partners every thirty to sixty seconds. Each round may include a specific prompt or question. The exercise quickly builds familiarity across a large group and lowers the social barriers that inhibit collaborative creation.
Meditation to Scenes
Meditation to Scenes is an exercise in which performers begin with a brief guided meditation and then immediately bring the images, sensations, or emotional states that arose in meditation into an improvised scene. The exercise trains the ability to work from genuine internal experience rather than externally constructed premises, using the quieted, image-rich state of meditation as a source of authentic material for scene initiation.
New Object to Talk
New Object to Talk is a warm-up exercise in which a player picks up or mimes a new object each time they wish to speak. The constraint forces performers to justify constant physical activity while maintaining conversational coherence. The exercise trains object work skills and teaches players to integrate physicality with dialogue.
Touch to Talk
Touch to Talk is a scene exercise in which performers may only speak while physically touching another player or an object in the environment. The constraint forces players to make physical contact meaningful and teaches the connection between physical engagement and verbal expression.
Sink to the Floor
Sink to the Floor is a physical trust exercise in which players gradually lower themselves to the ground in slow, controlled movement while maintaining awareness of the group. The exercise teaches body control, spatial awareness, and the ability to commit to slow, deliberate physical choices without rushing to completion.
How to Reference This Page
The Improv Archive. (2026). Eye to Eye. Retrieved March 17, 2026, from https://improvarchive.org/exercises/eye-to-eye
The Improv Archive. "Eye to Eye." The Improv Archive, 2026. https://improvarchive.org/exercises/eye-to-eye.
The Improv Archive. "Eye to Eye." The Improv Archive, 2026, https://improvarchive.org/exercises/eye-to-eye. Accessed March 17, 2026.
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